Raed Fares, left, and Razan Ghazzawi, activists who oppose both Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and al-Qaeda, speak Thursday at Troy Community Center

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Two noted Syrian secular activists who oppose the government of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad said they and others like them are increasingly under attack from an Islamist extremist group related to al-Qaeda.

Speaking Thursday night to about 50 Syrian-Americans in Troy, Razan Ghazzawi and Raed Fares said the moderate voice in Syria is being drowned out by the repression of Assad's government and the growing power inside Syria of ISIS, a group tied to al-Qaeda. In the past, both activists were targeted by Assad forces, but now say that dealing with al-Qaeda is a big problem.